While much of the GOP — including several of his 2012 opponents — inches toward supporting withdrawal from Afghanistan, Tim Pawlenty plants his flag on the pro-war right:

On the eve of President Barack Obama’s speech announcing a troop drawdown, Tim Pawlenty cautioned the GOP Tuesday against going wobbly on Afghanistan.

“I don’t like the drift of the Republican Party toward what appears to be a retreat or a move more towards isolationism,” the former Minnesota governor told POLITICO reporters in an interview.

Pawlenty expressed concern that Obama, who is scheduled to deliver a major speech about the conflict, will bring combat troops home too quickly.

He also suggested that front-runner Mitt Romney hasn’t staked out a firm position on the issue.

“I don’t know how to interpret his comments during the [recent New Hampshire] debate,” he said. “He walked them back post-debate in a couple of publications, so I’m not sure where he landed finally on that.”

Pawlenty has struggled to find a distinctive niche for himself in the 2012 field, other than "the guy nobody hates." By moving to outflank Romney, Jon Huntsman and others on the war, he puts himself in a position to vie for the hearts and minds of the Weekly Standard wing of the Republican Party.